| Year: | 1978 |
| Division: | Division I |
| Teams: | 34 |
| Collegeworldseriesballpark: | Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium |
| City: | Omaha, NE |
| Champions: | Southern California |
| Titlecount: | 11th |
| Runner-Up: | Arizona State |
| Cwscount: | 2nd |
| Coach: | Rod Dedeaux |
| Coachcount: | 11th |
| Mop: | Rod Boxberger |
| Mopteam: | Southern California |
| Tournament Link: | NCAA Division I Baseball Championship |
The 1978 NCAA Division I baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1978 NCAA Division I baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the College World Series, a double-elimination tournament in its thirty-second year. Eight regional competitions were held to determine the participants in the final event. Seven regions held a four team, double-elimination tournament while one region included six teams, resulting in 34 teams participating in the tournament at the conclusion of their regular season, and in some cases, after a conference tournament.[1] The thirty-second tournament's champion was Southern California, coached by Rod Dedeaux. The Most Outstanding Player was Rod Boxberger of Southern California.
The opening rounds of the tournament were played across eight regional sites across the country, seven consisting of four teams and one of six teams.[2] The winners of each District advanced to the College World Series.
Bold indicates winner.
| School | Conference | Record (conference) | Head coach | CWS appearances | CWS best finish | CWS record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53–10 (15–3) | 9 (last: 1977) | 1st (1965, 1967, 1969, 1977) | 34–14 | ||||
| 32–17–2 (15–9) | 1 (last: 1977) | 8th (1977) | 0–2 | ||||
| n/a | 48–10 (n/a) | 1 (last: 1974) | 2nd (1974) | 3–2 | |||
| 29–15 (13–3) | 2 (last: 1962) | 1st (1953) | 8–1 | ||||
| 36–15 (9–3) | 2 (last: 1966) | 7th (1960) | 0–4 | ||||
| n/a | 44–10 (n/a) | 0 (last: none) | none | 0–0 | |||
| 40–16 (n/a) | 4 (last: 1968) | 4th (1949, 1966, 1968) | 5–8 | ||||
| 49–9 (15–3) | 16 (last: 1974) | 1st (1948, 1958, 1961, 1963, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974) | 58–19 |
| Date | Game | Winner | Score | Loser | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2 | Game 1 | 4–0 | ||||
| Game 2 | 9–3 | |||||
| June 3 | Game 3 | 11–0 | ||||
| Game 4 | 13–2 | |||||
| Game 5 | 12–1 | Baylor eliminated | ||||
| June 4 | Game 6 | 9–5 | St. John's eliminated | |||
| Game 7 | 11–3 | |||||
| Game 8 | 7–6 | |||||
| June 5 | Game 9 | 7–6 | Michigan eliminated | |||
| Game 10 | 5–3 | Oral Roberts eliminated | ||||
| June 6 | Game 11 | 5–2 | ||||
| June 7 | Game 12 | 11–3 | Miami eliminated | |||
| Game 13 | 3–2 | North Carolina eliminated | ||||
| June 8 | Final | 10–3 | Southern California wins CWS |
The following players were members of the All-Tournament Team.
| Position | Player | School | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | Rod Boxberger (MOP) | style= | USC | |
| style= | Arizona State | |||
| C | style= | Arizona State | ||
| 1B | style= | USC | ||
| 2B | style= | |||
| 3B | style= | Arizona State | ||
| SS | style= | USC | ||
| OF | style= | USC | ||
| style= | USC | |||
| style= | Arizona State | |||
| DH | style= | Miami (FL) |